The goal of MyBatMitzvahStory.org is to enrich the bat mitzvah experience by helping girls and their families personalize this milestone to reflect their own traditions and values. In recognition of the increasing diversity of the American Jewish community, MyBatMitzvahStory.org offers new options for unaffiliated and interfaith families, as well as activities for those celebrating a bat mitzvah in traditional settings. MyBatMitzvahStory.org makes it fun for girls to discover connections to their heritage and build solid foundations for their future as strong Jewish women.

For Girls

MyBatMitzvahStory.org helps girls and their families investigate their own history together, when and where they choose. The site provides tools and templates for conducting oral history interviews and collecting family artifacts, which girls can gather, curate, and share on their own personalized (but private) profile pages. A series of interactive features engages girls in reflecting on their own identities and imagining their futures as Jewish women. Girls are also be introduced to new role models through the stories of activists, artists, athletes, and other “cool Jewish women.”

For Parents

A separate parents’ page includes tips for using the site with daughters and some ideas to help daughters and families think more broadly about what it means to become a bat mitzvah.

For Clergy and Educators

In addition to providing a place for girls and families to explore this important milestone, MyBatMitzvahStory.org offers educational materials for clergy and educators to use in mixed-gender congregational and classroom settings. This unique set of engaging educational activities prompts b’nai mitzvah students to examine their own identities, investigate the history of their families and communities, and consider what it means to be a role model and an adult.

The Jewish Women's Archive will pilot elements of MyBatMitzvahStory.org in the Greater Boston area before launching a full version of the website in 2012.

MyBatMitzvahStory.org is funded in part by the Boston Jewish Community Women’s Fund and the Polinger Family Foundation.